GAME TWO – GOLD COAST VS PERTH

PRE-GAME

What else better to do than watch game two of the Blaze/Wildcats semi final series on a Tuesday night? I certainly wasn’t going to be watching the Twenty 20 Cricket. It couldn’t have worked out better for the NBL; I mean who wants to watch the Aussies chase 139 runs. I think I’ll be watching Fox Sports tonight.

Before the game I asked myself some questions that will be answered in the next two hours. Can Perth get the road win which will give them that much needed rest before the Grand Final or will they play poorly on the road again? Will Adam Gibson be able to dictate the pace of the match or will Damo and Robbins get the better of him again? After speaking to Gibbo during the week he told me that he had to be more aggressive from the get go so that they will back off him and let him run the offence.

My key player for the game is James Harvey. If Harvey can get going it will free up the rest of his teammates and make life a little easier for the Blaze to get the home win. The more mobile bigs of the Blaze will be able to work one-on-one with the space created by Harvey’s dead eye shooting. Not long until the game kicks off, I think it could be a cracker but I’m predicting the Gold Coast by eight. Let’s hope they sell the Convention Centre out!

GAME TIME

The first quarter kicked off in entertaining fashion. Bradshaw opened the game up with a three ball and a layup which gave BT a heart attack; I don’t think he’s seen many big guys hit the perimeter jump shot. Gibson also chimed in from down town keeping the Blaze ahead early. The game was being played at a ferocious pace. Damian Martin was unreal on the defensive end picking up some early steals and taking a charge against the bigger Bradshaw. One of the early highlights of the game was Martin getting upstairs to try and block Harvey’s layup. That call could have gone either way!  It definitely showed Perth weren’t coming here for a training run. Vanderjagt had the same thing in mind with a nice hustle play leaping out of court to keep the ball in to get the Blaze a bucket. The game then turned into a scrapfest with plenty of missed shots and turnovers. The quarter finished off strongly by the Blaze with Goulding hitting two threes to keep the Blaze ahead at the break. Did anyone see some of the Blaze players drinking ‘Mother’ on the bench (surely that can’t be good for you)?

For the love of God boys dunk the damn ball will you! Too many layups missed during the opening of the second quarter, especially considering the athleticism some of the players possess. After it being a little scrappy Mika Vukona took the ball to the hoop strong for the and-one.  Goulding continued his hot shooting with another long bomb. Stephen Weigh kept Perth in the game; after a quiet first quarter Weigh hit some big shots in the second. With Harvey being kept out of the game having only taken two shots it was Goulding and Bradshaw leading the way for the Blaze. It became a one-on-one show for a minute or two with Bradshaw and Schenscher going at it, each connecting with their shots. After a poor first quarter shooting wise, you could say it was raining trifectas in the second quarter. The commentators couldn’t believe Bradshaw’s ability to hit the three, but back when he played in the Bullets that was all he did. Towards the end of the half Harvey started to assert himself into the game and with his teammates already playing really well, it could spell doom for the Wildcats in the second half.

I was certainly looking forward to the second half, especially with Harvey starting to come to light.  Harvey opened the third with a big three and then seemed to get popped in the jaw by Redhage. Toughen up pretty boy. I can’t believe he got subbed out of the game.  Come on Joey it’s finals time, keep him out there. It seemed every time the Blaze jumped to a nice lead the Wildcats would score easy baskets on the back of lackluster defense by the boys in blue. Wright tried to fire up the boys after blowing up at the referee for a missed travel on Weigh. He definitely travelled, it reminded me of the travel the referees missed on Dan Majerle back in the day (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4D9Z1wAwQtM). Guess it even happens in the NBA. 

Erron Maxey was having a shocker and just couldn’t find his feet throughout the match. If they are going to get through this game he’s going to have to play a part. This quarter was much like the first until Cattalini and Goulding had a few words during free throws. Harvey was really finding his groove and was looking like Reggie Miller out there, running off baseline picks and hitting the jumper. A 12-point lead heading into the fourth, are we heading back to Perth for a third game? I hope so!

Just like the opening of the third Harvey again comes out nailing a triple in the corner. This man is unconscious. With the game blowing out it seemed the Wildcats were focusing too much of their attention on the referees and not putting the ball in the hole. That’s a recipe for disaster if you ask me. Harvey then gets subbed out of the game which gives the Wildcats a sniff as the Blaze looked like they got lost in their own fire. Sorry Joey, but I think you’re crazy not having Harvey out there.

With the Wildcats now breathing down the necks of the Blaze, Harvey returns and decides to pull up from a metre behind the three point line and cash it in.

Right back at you says Lisch as he drills a monster three ball cutting the lead to four with 3:47 remaining. Lisch then steals the ball and goes in for a layup despite a chop to the arm.

Damian Martin makes a huge play by reading Vukona’s pass and hands it off to Redhage who makes no mistake finishing the layup. Two-point game, did anyone say CHOKE! Lisch with another steal whom finds Big Red Schenscher trailing the fast break who then finishes with the flush, and we have a tied ball game. Damian Martin takes it upon himself, gets to the rim and finishes a spectacular shot. They’ve hit the lead after being down by 15 with eight minutes to play. What a comeback!

Bradshaw finds himself with a mismatch, turnaround jump shot is … good! All tied up at 76-76 and the crowd is going mental!

Lisch comes off a pick from Schenscher and drills one of the biggest threes he will ever hit, putting them up by three with 35 seconds to go. This guy has ice in his veins when it comes to the clutch. So many big fourth quarter games this man has had.

Adam Gibson turns the ball over, which sends the Cat to the line, where he hits one from two and that’s the game folks.

Perth is off to the final for the first time since 2003 after one of the best comebacks the NBL has ever seen. Great efforts from Harvey and Goulding to keep their side in the ball game but it wasn’t enough in the end as the Wildcats clawed their way back for a memorable victory. Martin and Robbins again kept Gibbo at bay which towards the end of the match got it done for the visitors as the Gold Coast could not get their offence right. Player of the match would have to be a joint effort between Lisch and the all-round play of Martin.

I look forward to catching tomorrow nights match; it should be a great one and will be interesting to see how the Crocs bounce back from two humiliating losses.

The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not reflect those of the National Basketball League.